I’ve always been jealous of people I know, like Jason Torchinsky for example, who have been able to keep the same car pretty much forever. I’ve owned some great cars over the years, stuff I’ve really loved (and loathed), but I have nothing like the relationship Jason has with the yellow Volkswagen Beetle he’s owned since he was a teenager. Having a “forever car” is a special thing, and it takes a lot of work.
I’m thinking about this because the latest round of videos from Future Classics just dropped. You may remember when we featured their work last year. It’s the brainchild of director Elias Ressegatti, a series of vignettes shot in 16mm film about interesting, unloved, under-appreciated, “working-class” dream cars. It’s an idea I think we can all get behind.
The first one is very much a forever car, and an under-appreciated car. It’s Ressegatti’s own 1999 Porsche 911, and despite being the much-loathed (unfairly, I’ll add) first water-cooled 996, he says it’s a superb driver’s car he can’t imagine parting with. Beyond any monetary value, it reminds him of his father and the love of cars they shared, and how it helped their relationship later in life.
Next up we have owner Andrew and his classic Mercedes-Benz 450SLC. The R107 and its C107 variant, shown here, is pretty ubiquitous. That’s especially true in Los Angeles. But it doesn’t make them any less special or less cool, and it remains a personal favorite of mine as well.
Finally, we have Jose from Long Beach and his 1992 Fox Mustang. He calls it a “Ferrari slayer,” and maybe that’s mostly true depending on which Ferrari you’re talking about, but we all know how badass a 5.0 can be for relatively cheap.
One thing I think all these owners have in common: they don’t seem eager to part with their cars anytime soon, or ever. All of them have the potential to be forever cars, and with the right amount of maintenance and love (some more than others, in the case of that 996) they absolutely can be.
Do you have a forever car? If not, what would it be?